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Robinson is great writer with command of facts

Peter Degen (Feb. 6 letter, “U.S. always has imposed limits on immigration”) writes that "Eugene Robinson's blind allegiance has taken the form of a literary caricature."

The gentleman should have fact-checked the story he was trying to relate, to wit...

He refers to “a ship named the Spirit of St. Louis (that) arrived with Jewish refugees fleeing Hitler and certain extermination.” The ship was the SS St. Louis and not the Spirit of St. Louis (Charles Lindbergh's plane).

The ship left Hamburg 13 May 1939 bound for Havana, Cuba. World War II had not yet started. It carried 939 passengers, mostly all Jewish from Germany who had paid for Cuban visas in Berlin.

It arrived in Havana on May 27, 1939, where it was held for five days before being turned away by the Cuban government for fear more refugees would follow.

It sailed to Florida where it again was turned away for the same reason, before sailing to Antwerp, Belgium, arriving on June 17, 1939.

Degen states "Robinson should brush up on historical facts. He should do his homework". May I suggest Degen do the same. As Ronald Reagan once said, "Facts are pesky things; trust but verify."

Shooting from the lip has become popular, especially with our current administration. Letters like Degen’s perpetuate "fake facts,” thus creating “fake news.”